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JOINT CIRCULAR No. 35/2003/TTLT/BTC-BGDDT OF APRIL 17, 2003 GUIDING SOME SPENDING CONTENTS AND LEVELS FOR THE PROJECT ON DEVELOPMENT OF PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS

Pursuant to the Development Credit Agreement No. 3594-VN of April 2, 2002; the Agreement No. TF 023861 of April 2, 2002 between the Vietnamese Government and the World Bank (WB) on non-refundable aid from the DFID's trust-guarantee fund for donation to the Project on Development of Primary School Teachers;

Pursuant to the Prime Minister's Decision No. 906/QD-TTg of July 24, 2001 on the investment (first phase) in the Project on Development of Primary School Teachers;

Pursuant to the Finance Minister's Decision No. 112/2001/QD-BTC of November 9, 2001 promulgating some spending norms applicable to projects funded with borrowed official development assistance (ODA);

Pursuant to the Education and Training Minister's Decision No. 6051/QD-BGDDT-TCCB of November 5, 2001 on setting up the Coordinating Board for the Project on Development of Primary School Teachers;

The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Education and Training hereby jointly guide some spending contents and levels for the Project on Development of Primary School Teachers as follows:

I. GENERAL PROVISIONS:

1. The Ministry of Education and Training is the agency which manages the Project on Development of Primary School Teachers.

The Coordinating Board for the Project on Development of Primary School Teachers (hereinafter referred to as the Project Coordinating Board) shall perform the tasks of organizing the implementation and coordination of the project's activities.

2. Funding for the implementation of the Project on Development of Primary School Teachers belongs to non-business capital source, including:

- Capital borrowed from the World Bank (WB);

- Non-refundable aid from the UK Department for International Development (DFID);

- Reciprocal capital of the Vietnamese Government.

3. The provisions of this Joint Circular shall apply only to the Project on Development of Primary School Teachers.

II. SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

1. Determination of spending tasks:

1.1. Capital borrowed from the WB:

- Payment for the procurement of goods, materials, equipment, facilities and instruments in service of the experimental teaching and learning;

- Payment for domestic and overseas training, including: seminars, fostering and training of teachers, performance of experimental teaching, elaboration of framework curriculums and compilation of teaching stuff.

1.2. Non-refundable aid from the DFID:

- Payment for domestic consultancy (including wages for contractual personnel engaged in professional jobs in cases where such is approved in writing by the DFID and the WB) and foreign consultancy;

- Payment for overseas training.

1.3. Reciprocal capital of the Vietnamese Government:

- Payment for regular activities of the Project Coordinating Board: house rents, stationery; electricity- and water-supply charges; communications, lease contracts, taxes...

- Payment of wages to contractual drivers and service personnel...

- Payment for domestic training: seminars, fostering and training of teachers, performance of experimental teaching, elaboration of framework curriculums and compilation of teaching stuff;

- Payment for the procurement of goods, documents, equipment, facilities and instruments in service of the experimental teaching and learning.

1.4. The spending of the project's capital sources for the above-stated tasks shall strictly comply with the proportions prescribed in the Credit Agreement and the Agreement on Non-refundable Aid.

2. Spending contents and levels of the project:

2.1. Expenses for domestic conferences, seminars, training and fostering:

- The Project Coordinating Board shall elaborate detailed reports on the contents, numbers of participants, time and venues, compatible with the project implementation requirements and the terms prescribed in the Credit Agreement and the Agreement on Non-refundable Aid.

- The duration of conferences and seminars shall not exceed 3 days and the duration of training courses shall not exceed 10 days. The spending levels for these tasks shall comply with the Finance Minister's Decision No. 112/2001/QD-BTC promulgating a number of spending norms applicable to projects funded with borrowed official development assistance (ODA).

- The spending levels for training courses of a duration of over 10 days and domestic training courses shall comply with the contracts between training establishments and the project, with the approval of the Ministry of Education and Training.

2.2. Expenses for experimental teaching and payment of responsibility allowances for teachers and school-level administrators of selected pedagogic schools and primary schools:

- Payment of allowances for teachers performing demonstration teaching: VND 10,000/period.

- Payment of expenses for teachers performing experimental teaching: VND 5,000/period.

- Payment of responsibility allowances for school-level administrators (principals and vice principals directly participating in the project's activities) of selected pedagogic schools and primary schools, and members of Experimentation Steering Committees of various levels (if any): not exceeding VND 150,000/person/month.

2.3. Expenses for elaboration of framework curricula for assorted majors and compilation of curricula for study subjects:

- Compiling introductory documents and draft documents for discussion and conclusion of the Councils for Elaboration of Curricula: VND 50,000/page.

- Elaborating framework curricula and curriculum of study subjects:

* Elaboration of curricula: VND 55,000/period.

* Overall correction and editing: VND 30,000/period.

* Judgment and commenting: VND 25,000/period.

- Compilation of teaching stuff:

* Teaching stuff writing: VND 50,000/page.

* Correction and editing: VND 25,000/page.

* Judgment and commenting: VND 20,000/page

2.4. Spending norms for translation:

To comply with the Finance Minister's Decision No. 112/2001/QD-BTC promulgating some spending norms applicable to projects funded with borrowed official development assistance (ODA), concretely as follows:

(1) Translation:

- Translation of documents from foreign languages into Vietnamese: not exceeding VND 35,000/page of 300 words.

- Translation of documents from Vietnamese into foreign languages: not exceeding VND 40,000/page of 300 words.

(2) Interpretation:

- Ordinary interpretation: not exceeding VND 70,000/hour/person, equivalent to a maximum of VND 560,000/person/day of 8 working hours.

- Simultaneous interpretation: not exceeding VND 150,000/hour/person, equivalent to a maximum of VND 1,200,000/person/day of 8 working hours.

The above-stated spending norms for translation and interpretation shall apply only to cases where the project needs to hire translators and/or interpreters from outside and not apply to translators and/or interpreters being the project officers.

2.5. Expenses for seminars as well as short-term and long-term training in foreign countries:

- The spending levels for officials participating in seminars as well as short-term training courses in foreign countries shall comply with the Finance Ministry's Circular No. 45/1999/TT-BTC of May 4, 1999 stipulating the regime of working-trip allowances for State officials and employees on overseas short-term working missions and the Finance Ministry's Circular No. 108/1999/TT-BTC of September 4, 1999 guiding and supplementing some points of Circular No. 45/1999/TT-BTC.

- For the task of overseas long-term training:

+ On the basis of the Education and Training Ministry's stipulations on the selection of students under the scheme on training scientific and technical officials at foreign training establishments with the State budget, the Project Coordinating Board shall work out a Regulation on selection of students to be sent abroad for long-term training and submit it to the Ministry of Education and Training for approval.

+ The spending levels shall comply with the provisions in Joint Circular No. 88/2001/TTLT/BTC-BGDDT-BNG of November 6, 2001 of the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Education and Training and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, guiding the management and allocation of State budget funding for the scheme on training scientific and technical officials at foreign training establishments with the State budget, Joint Circular No. 28/2003/TTLT-BTC-BGDDT of April 4, 2003 of the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Education and Training stipulating the regime of collection and use of fees for sitting in enrolment examinations (enrolment fees) to education-training establishments of the national education system.

+ The obligations of students sent abroad for studying shall comply with the provisions in Joint Circular No. 75/2000/TTLB/BTC-BGDDT of July 20, 2000 of the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Education and Training guiding the training fund repayment by subjects who have been sent to study aboard but do not return home as scheduled and other provisions of the project.

2.6. Domestic surveys being constituents of the project shall comply with the contracts between the Project Coordinating Board and domestic consultancy units on the basis of the surveys' requirements. The spending levels for those tasks shall be decided by the Project Coordinating Board on the basis of the spending levels prescribed in the Finance Ministry's Circular No. 114/2000/TT-BTC of November 27, 2000 guiding the management of funding for surveys funded with the State budget's non-business capital source.

2.7. Payment for overtime work shall comply with the provisions of the Labor Code and the Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs Ministry's Circular No. 18/LDTBXH-TT of June 2, 1993 guiding the implementation of the regime of wages and allowances for overtime work and night work.

2.8. The levels of package payment of mobile phone charges shall be as follows:

- For the head of the Project Coordinating Board: not exceeding VND 300,000/month.

- For project assistants: not exceeding VND 200,000/month.

2.9. The levels of package payment of working-trip allowances for officials and employees who have to regularly use their personal means for working missions shall not exceed VND 100,000/month/person.

2.10. Expenses for the experimentation and implementation of professional standards and training modules as well as payment for allowances to primary school teachers:

- Elaborating documents guiding the application of professional standards to the evaluation of primary school teachers;

- Analyzing requirements of programs on training and fostering primary school teachers;

- Formulating training and fostering modules, video and audio tapes, CD discs, websites;

- Compiling and teaching experimental curriculums and new teaching stuff for fostering primary school teachers at pedagogic schools and primary schools

Basing himself/herself on the contents and nature of the works, the head of the Coordinating Board shall decide the form of implementation of the works (work-based contracts, time-based contracts, package contracts...) and the spending level for each piece of work suitable to the funding capability of the project.

2.11. Apart from the above-stated spending contents and levels, the Project on Development of Primary School Teachers may use funding from the DFID's non-refundable aid for spending on the following contents:

a) Payment of salaries to contractual personnel working for the project at the following levels:

- Level 1: Between USD 100/person/month and USD 200/person/month.

- Level 2: Between USD 200/person/month and USD 250/person/month.

Basing himself/herself on the working capacity and quality, the head of the Project Coordinating Board shall report to the Minister of Education and Training for the latter to approve the payment of salaries to contractual personnel of the project.

b) Payment of salaries for domestic consultants (domestic consultants recruited to positions prescribed in the Agreement; the recruitment process shall strictly comply with the guidance of the World Bank, the donors and the Vietnamese Government) at the following levels:

- Level 1: Between USD 250/person/month and USD 450/person/month.

- Level 2: Between USD 450/person/month and USD 600/person/month.

- Level 3: Between USD 600/person/month and USD 800/person/month.

Basing himself/herself on the work requirements, the qualifications of the specialists and the agreements thereon, the Ministry of Education and Training shall decide or authorize the head of the Project Coordinating Board to decide the payment of salaries to domestic specialists.

3. Estimation, allocation, management and settlement of funding:

The estimation, management, allocation and settlement of funding shall comply with current mechanisms applicable to non-business ODA source.

3.1. Estimation:

Annually, strictly according to the stipulations on the elaboration of State budget estimates, the Project Coordinating Board shall work out and send the project's budget estimates to the Ministry of Education and Training for inclusion into the Education and Training Ministry's budget estimates to be sent to the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Planning and Investment for summing-up and submission to the Government then the National Assembly for approval.

The project's annual cost estimates must clearly determine the sources of borrowed capital, non-refundable aid and reciprocal capital (non-business capital) of the Vietnamese Government.

After being assigned plans by the Prime Minister, the Finance Ministry shall notify the budget expenditure estimates to the Ministry of Education and Training, including the project's budget estimates. The Ministry of Education and Training shall allocate funding to the project according to current regulations.

On the basis of the annual funding estimates allocated to the project, the Project Coordinating Board shall formulate and send its financial plans to the Ministry of Education and Training and the Ministry of Finance. Basing itself on the project's financial plans and the opinions of the Ministry of Education and Training, the Ministry of Finance shall issue written agreement on the project's financial plans and send it to the Ministry of Education and Training and the State Treasury.

3.2. Expenditure control and funding allocation:

The process, procedures and requirements on spending dossiers shall comply with the Finance Ministry's Circular No. 40/1998/TT-BTC of March 31, 1998 guiding the regime of management, allocation and payment of State budget expenditures via State Treasuries and relevant documents.

The State Treasuries shall have to control spending items for activities carried out by the Project Coordinating Board under the project's scope.

The allocation of reciprocal capital from the State budget to the project shall comply with the current regulations on allocation of State budget capital.

3.3. Withdrawal and use of capital borrowed from the World Bank (WB):

The procedures and mode for withdrawal of capital from the source of capital borrowed from the WB shall comply with the provisions in Joint Circular No. 81/1998/TTLT-BTC-NHNN of June 17, 1998 of the Ministry of Finance and the State Bank guiding the process, procedures and management of capital withdrawal for official development assistance sources and Decision No. 96/2000/QD-BTC of June 12, 2000 of the Minister of Finance promulgating detailed guidance on the process and procedures for withdrawal of ODA capital.

3.4. The accounting, settlement and management of assets shall comply with current regimes applicable to administrative and non-business sectors.

The audit work shall strictly comply with the provisions in the Agreement and principles of the donors.

III. IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS

This Joint Circular takes effect 15 days after its publication in the Official Gazette.

The funding already advanced as from the effective time of the project till the effective time of this Joint Circular shall be repaid at specific spending levels prescribed in this Joint Circular.

Any difficulties and problems arising in the course of implementation should be reported to the two ministries for consideration and settlement.

For the Minister of Finance

Vice Minister
NGUYEN CONG NGHIEP

For the Minister of Education and Training

Vice Minister
DANG HUYNH MAI